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Robert Kern
We Were Soldiers Too, Serving As A Reagan Soldier During The Cold War
We Were Soldiers Too, Serving As A Reagan Soldier During The Cold War
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On the verge of World War 3 and nuclear war, We Were Soldiers Too is about the difficult job of serving in the infantry during a very critical time of the Cold War. It is a personal account of military service and the historical events that were happening during President Reagan's time in office as the world faced the possibility of nuclear war.
My time in the army was from November 1980 until March 1988 which coincided with President Reagan's time in office. Go through basic training with me as I was transformed from a naive seventeen year old boy into a dedicated, diehard soldier. Follow my journey to maturity while serving in Germany as the first line of defense for an invasion of the Soviet Union. Assigned the responsibility of defending an area in the Fulda Gap with only one objective, to hold the advancing soviets until reinforcements arrived. An assignment that likely would have been ground zero of a nuclear war if the soviets had attacked.
By the time I arrived at Fort Knox, I was a complete soldier, focused on being the best soldier I could be by submerging myself into every aspect of military life. This period saw the infantry transition from the slower, heavy armor vehicles to more technologically advanced armor like the Abrams tank and the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. My final three years were spent at Schofield Barracks, the most physical assignment of my career, and the most rewarding.
As President Reagan was going toe to toe with communism, the country started pouring tons of money into the defense budget, leading to huge changes as the older armored vehicles were replaced with faster, more technologically advanced ones. By the time I got to Schofield Barracks, the downsizing would begin. Terrorism was on the rise and to combat these new types of warfare, the army started converting units to light infantry to allow for rapid mobilization to multiple hotspots. My unit would be one of the first to go through the rigorous training and redesignation to light infantry.
I hope my story raises awareness for the important roles Cold War veterans played in our history. I also hope this helps others like myself as they wrestle with the dilemma of being a peacetime veteran during a wartime period. No veteran should be ashamed of their service, even if they never saw combat.
My time in the army was from November 1980 until March 1988 which coincided with President Reagan's time in office. Go through basic training with me as I was transformed from a naive seventeen year old boy into a dedicated, diehard soldier. Follow my journey to maturity while serving in Germany as the first line of defense for an invasion of the Soviet Union. Assigned the responsibility of defending an area in the Fulda Gap with only one objective, to hold the advancing soviets until reinforcements arrived. An assignment that likely would have been ground zero of a nuclear war if the soviets had attacked.
By the time I arrived at Fort Knox, I was a complete soldier, focused on being the best soldier I could be by submerging myself into every aspect of military life. This period saw the infantry transition from the slower, heavy armor vehicles to more technologically advanced armor like the Abrams tank and the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. My final three years were spent at Schofield Barracks, the most physical assignment of my career, and the most rewarding.
As President Reagan was going toe to toe with communism, the country started pouring tons of money into the defense budget, leading to huge changes as the older armored vehicles were replaced with faster, more technologically advanced ones. By the time I got to Schofield Barracks, the downsizing would begin. Terrorism was on the rise and to combat these new types of warfare, the army started converting units to light infantry to allow for rapid mobilization to multiple hotspots. My unit would be one of the first to go through the rigorous training and redesignation to light infantry.
I hope my story raises awareness for the important roles Cold War veterans played in our history. I also hope this helps others like myself as they wrestle with the dilemma of being a peacetime veteran during a wartime period. No veteran should be ashamed of their service, even if they never saw combat.
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